Blokes who would normally spend Easter tramping, hunting, fishing, surfing or at their local DIY store are being urged to read instead.
A new online campaign starts today to encourage more men to read, following research which showed the number of adult men who read or started to read at least one book in 2017 dropped from 84 to 81 per cent. Men also made up 69 per cent of those who did not read a book in that time – up from 63 per cent the previous year.
The Blokes vs Books initiative, started by Read NZ Te Pou Muramura and the NZ Society of Authors, features well-known New Zealand men talking with playwright Victor Rodger about reading, their favourite books and the books they meant to but never got around to reading.
Famous faces include Leigh Hart, Shortland Street actor Jay Kiriona, the founders of independent brewery The Garage Project and Hell Pizza, MP Damien O'Connor and politician turned broadcaster John Tamihere.